On Wednesday, we saw Liverpool crash out of the Champions League to Atletico Madrid. They were unable to reach a third final in a row and try to make it seven European Cups as goals from Marcos Llorente and Alvaro Morata sent them packing. After losing to Chelsea in the F.A Cup some argue that the shine has been taken off the title winning season.
There is no discrediting what a sensational season it has been for Liverpool Football Club as they have romped away to become the champions in waiting. The front three have been as devastating as usual and the impact Jordan Henderson has had on dragging his teammates through games cannot be overstated. Liverpool have been dominant and only Manchester United and Watford have taken points away from this season; Watford proving the side to take all three points from their invincible season.
Jurgen Klopp has proved what an amazing coach and manager he has been since he has taken over. Despite the heartache of the Europa League final in 2016, Champions League final 2017 and missing out on the Premier League in 2018/19 he has managed to rouse his players to challenge once again.
There is currently a 25 point gap between Liverpool and Manchester City in second place. Just take that in. Liverpool have gone from strength to strength this season and will rightfully be crowned the Premier League champions for the first time at the end of the season.
Many fans will be hoping that it will be the catalyst for many more top flight titles as they look to emulate Manchester United who currently have 20 titles to Liverpool’s 18; 19 at the end of the season. They have proved they can be a dominant force in Europe and the world with winning the Champions League last season and the Club World Cup this year. However, they might be left thinking what might have happened this year.
Winning the Premier League is no easy job and it is not to be taken lightly but with the noise coming out of Anfield that this current team could be the best ever, there have been question marks around their credentials to create such a legacy; they only need to look at their own history as they dominated England and Europe during the late 70’s and early 80’s specifically the 1983-84 season.
Many have alluded to the fact that they have not managed to challenge on all fronts. You just have to look at Manchester City last season who managed to win a domestic treble with Liverpool breathing down their neck all the way. They may have progressed in the Champions League if not for a contentious decision by VAR. They were dominant across the board and kept a genuine title contender at bay.
The team that will always be brought up to question this current Liverpool side is the treble winning 1998/99 Manchester United side. They managed to win three trophies in the space of ten days as they kept that focus and hunger to create history. They will live on in infamy across the country but with Liverpool winning just the one trophy they could slip into obscurity as just title winners.
After this season, it could really spur Liverpool on to go and complete the treble or at least the European double because at the moment they are level with Blackburn Rovers and Leicester City for Premier League titles. One does have to imagine that Klopp may take the F.A Cup more seriously and prove that his side can challenge on all levels to prove they are even better than anyone that has come before them.
